Every year, many state and local public officers and employees receive automatic fines because they file their annual financial disclosure forms late or not at all.

Annual financial disclosure must be filed or postmarked no later than September 3 to avoid automatic fines of $25 per day, said Virlindia Doss, executive director of the Florida Commission on Ethics.

Because many lawyers are either officials who must file themselves, or serve as advisors to boards whose members are required to file, Doss said she wants all members of the Bar to know that the annual financial disclosure forms must be filed or postmarked no later than September 3 to avoid the automatic fines.

“If you supervise persons who are required to file, please check their filing status and remind them to file on time,” Doss said. “If you serve as an adviser to persons who are required to file, please check their filing status and remind them to file.”

Whether you file with the supervisor of elections or the Commission on Ethics, you can check the commission’s website at www.ethics.state.fl.us to see whether a form has been received.